Equipment down time is a significant concern in many semiconductor processing facilities. In particular, the period in which any production equipment in a semiconductor fabrication line is off-line may, in effect, shut down the entire line, or in the least, reduce the productivity and output of the line. Accordingly, it is desirable to minimize the down time of any production equipment to the fullest extent possible.
Semiconductor processing equipment, like all industrial equipment, is prone to periodic failures of individual components within the equipment. It is customary to maintain spare parts for major components of semiconductor processing equipment such that failed components can quickly be swapped out with a working spare component to minimize the down time of the equipment. The failed component is later repaired, if possible, and kept as a spare component for use when other such components later fail.
For example, one such type semiconductor processing equipment is a spin rinse dryer, which is used to clean semiconductor wafers after various stages of processing. As a result of the numerous processing steps associated with forming semiconductors on wafers, spin rinse dryers are used at a number of points in the process. In many facilities, tens of spin rinse dryers may be in operation at any given time.
A spin rinse dryer typically includes a carousel that houses a number of semiconductor wafers. The carousel is coupled to a high speed motor that rotates the carousel at different controlled rates. The carousel is mounted within a sealed chamber, and a heater, a vacuum source, and source of pressurized gas such as nitrogen are provided in the chamber to provide a controlled atmosphere. A dedicated controller maintains control over the carousel motor as well as various solenoids that activate the heater and sources in the chamber.
During various phases of operation, de-ionized water is sprayed on the wafers while the carousel is rotated (typically at about 400 RPM). Next, the rotational speed of the carousel is increased to 1800 RPM or more to dry the wafers via centrifugal force. Next, the rotational speed of the carousel is decreased (typically to about 600 RPM) prior to completion of the process. During each phase, a controlled, heated, inert atmosphere (e.g., of nitrogen gas) is maintained in the chamber to minimize any undesirable chemical reactions on the wafers.
As with most equipment, components such as the controller, the motor, and various cables on a spin rinse dryer are prone to periodic failure. For these reasons, spare components are typically kept on hand for swapping out failed components from time to time. However, swapping out such components typically requires the equipment to be taken off-line. Moreover, spin rinse dryers are typically located in temperature and humidity controlled clean room environments that require technicians to suit up in appropriate clean room attire to perform the maintenance procedure.
Often the repair of a failed component does not need to be performed within the clean room environment, but may be performed in a technician's shop. However, typically the only manner of testing a repaired component is to put the component back in the production equipment, whether immediately after repair or at such time that another component fails. However, reinstalling a repaired component in production equipment requires suiting up for the clean room environment and taking the equipment off-line, both of which decrease productivity and are unduly burdensome to technicians. In addition, there is a risk that an incorrectly-repaired component could damage the production equipment.
Therefore, a significant need exists for a versatile manner of testing various components in a spin rinse dryer such that equipment downtime is minimized and technician productivity is maximized.